{"id":1517,"date":"2020-06-30T06:35:01","date_gmt":"2020-06-30T13:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/?p=1517"},"modified":"2023-01-10T16:03:18","modified_gmt":"2023-01-11T00:03:18","slug":"7th-chord-inversions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/7th-chord-inversions\/","title":{"rendered":"7th Chord Inversions (Dreamy Piano)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This lesson is a 2-for-1. You’ll learn how to play incredible “dreamy” sounds on the piano. AND you’ll also learn a way to practice 7th chord inversions!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s right. 7th chords can have inversions too!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Major 7th Chord<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Today we\u2019ll only be looking at the Major 7th chord. But you can practice this technique on ANY 7th chord<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two chords we\u2019ll be using are C Major 7 and F Major 7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s important to get comfortable with these chords and the NOTES that make up each one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s C Major 7:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"C<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As you can see the notes are C-E-G-B. Get familiar with those and remember, it\u2019s only 4 notes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And here\u2019s F major 7:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"F<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Again, only 4 notes (and 2 of them are the same as C Major 7). They\u2019re F-A-C-E.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Left-Hand Practice<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll start with some left-hand practice. My left-hand is definitely weaker than my right when it comes to 7th chords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With your left hand, play a C Major 7 broken chord. Just play the notes up and down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then with your right-hand, play ANY of the notes that make up that chord. Remember they are C-E-G-B. Play any one, in any order, in any rhythm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It sounds beautiful! But what it\u2019s also doing is teaching you to identify the notes that make up this chord. That will help you to \u201csee\u201d<\/i> the chord more clearly in the future (and in all its inversions – more on that soon).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you\u2019re comfortable with C Major 7, switch to F Major 7 and do the same thing. Play the broken chord with your left hand and play ANY of the notes that make up the chord with your right hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7th Chord Inversions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now we\u2019ll move back to the right-hand and start working on 7th chords in their different inversions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just like triads, 7th chords can have inversions. A regular three-note chord has 3 possible shapes. There\u2019s the root position, 1st inversion, and 2nd inversion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 7th chord has 4 notes. That means there are 4 possible shapes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look at C Major 7. Here it is in root position:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"C<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Now, if we take the bottom note (C) and move it to the top we have a chord that looks like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"C<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s still a C Major 7 chord. It still has the notes C-E-G-B, just in a different order (E-G-B-C). This is a C Major 7 in 1st inversion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now if we move the bottom note (E) to the top, we end up with this chord shape:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"C<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This is a C Major 7 in 2nd inversion. It’s still the same 4 notes, but a new order (G-B-C-E).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s one more inversion, and it\u2019s the one I use the most often. To make it, we take the bottom note (G) and move it to the top, giving us this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"C
This is a C Major 7 in 3rd inversion. I like this one the best because I find it the most comfortable to play with my small hands!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, my challenge to you is to do the same exercise for the F Major 7 chord! Figure out each inversion for the chord, remembering that you just take the bottom note and move it to the top.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how do you practice them?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now we\u2019ve done the theory, let\u2019s talk about how to practice these inversions in a way that\u2019s fun and musical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because just playing inversions is \u2026 boring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start by playing a broken C Major 7 chord in root position with your right-hand. Just play a simple C note with your left.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you\u2019re comfortable, try switching from the root position to the 1st inversion. This will require some concentration so take it slow and get it right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you can do that on C, switch to F Major 7 and do the same thing. That chord change creates a really beautiful dreamy sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal is to be able to play your way through all the different inversions for C Major 7 and F Major 7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This could take time. Take it slow. Have fun, and enjoy playing dreamy 7th chords on the piano!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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